Grace Cookeville » Pastor’s Corner

September 4, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:33:21 +0000

This coming Lord’s Day we have the great privi-
lege of sitting down to share a meal with our Savior
and Bridegroom. The Lord’s Supper was instituted
by Jesus on the night in which He was betrayed.
Have you ever wondered why Paul includes that last
phrase, “on the night in which He was betrayed”?
Part of the reason is that he wants to draw our at-
tention to the incredible love of our Savior for us –
just before He was about to enter His greatest suf-
fering, at the hands of men and God, He was think-
ing about you and me. He knew that our faith would
need propping up. He knew that we would doubt
His love for us. He knew that we would falter and
faint along the way. So He gave us this sign of His
covenant faithfulness, a physical sign since we live (as
He does forevermore) in a body.
We do at least three things as we eat and drink
at the Lord’s Supper: commemorate, commune, and
anticipate. We commemorate: “Do this in remem-
brance of Me.” This has reference to the past. We
remember the once-for-all, unrepeatable event of
our Lord’s death. We show forth His death; we de-
clare to all that the heart of the good news is a
bloody cross. There He bore our sins in His body,
and our sins were forgiven. There God’s wrath was
satiated, and He was reconciled to us. But it’s not
just that we remember that event – we remember
our Lord Himself. We remember that He who pos-
sessed all glory and riches became poor and suffered
for our sakes. He who knew no sin became sin for
us so that we might become the righteousness of
God in Him. We remember that the righteous shall
live by faith (a truth Habakkuk will teach us this
coming Lord’s Day).
We also commune. There is a present aspect to
what we will do this Sunday morning. The One
whose death we commemorate is living and present
with us. Jesus Christ is present at the table; He is the
host. We commune with our Savior in the eating of
the bread and the drinking of the cup. “Is not the
cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood
of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing
in the body of Christ?” (I Cor. 10:16). In Him are all
spiritual blessings; by His Holy Spirit and by faith we
partake of all that is in Him. You who eat with faith,
repentance, and love will feed upon His body and
blood – not literally (the bread and the wine remain
bread and wine), but spiritually. We are nourished
spiritually, and grow in grace as we remember what
our sin deserves and Christ’s death in our place. As
we eat we renew our thankfulness and our commit-
ment to God, as well as our love and fellowship with
one another, as members of the body of Christ. We
declare our willingness to walk in the steps our Savior
trod, suffering for His sake and the sake of the gospel.
Finally, at the Lord’s Supper we anticipate. We
“proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.” We must
not forget the future aspect to what we will do Sun-
day. There will one day be a presence of Jesus bodily
and visibly, and seeing Him we will be made like Him!
This sacrament will be no more, for the marriage sup-
per of the Lamb will be at hand. We anticipate that
day every time we partake of the Lord’s Supper.
In light of these three realities, the believer looks
in four directions as he/she comes to the Lord’s Ta-
ble: within, back, forward, and around. 1) Within. Ex-
amine yourself, says Paul in I Cor. 11:28. Look for sin
to confess, for knowledge of Christ and of what the
Lord’s Supper is all about, for faith to feed upon Him,
for repentance, love, and new obedience. 2) Back.
Look to Christ, who died to forgive your sins, who
suffered that you might be reconciled to God, who
drank the cup of God’s wrath that you might drink
the cup of God’s blessing. 3) Forward. Look with joy
to the second coming, when we will feast with our
heavenly Bridegroom in person. 4) Around. We must
discern or judge the body, says Paul in I Cor. 11. That
is, we must realize that we are not only in union and
communion with Christ, but with one another, and
are called to love and serve one another and forgive
one another as God in Christ has served and forgiven
us. Parents and grandparents, I encourage you to use
these words as you discuss the Lord’s Supper with
your children and grandchildren – especially if they
are not yet communing members. Let us pray that
God would continue to work the reality and the ma-
turity of faith into our hearts and the hearts of our
children’s children, and that this coming celebration of
the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper would indeed be a
means of grace to us all.
——————————–
We began Wednesday night adult small groups this
week, and new Sunday School classes begin this Sun-
day; please note the various offerings later on in the
newsletter. These times of fellowship and instruction
are a wonderful way to get to know in a more inti-
mate way the body of Christ, the word of God, and
the God of the word, and I encourage you to partici-
pate as you are able.
Your Pastor,
Caleb

August 21, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:31:12 +0000

“Grace grows best in winter.” Those words
were written to Lady Culross by Samuel Ruther-
ford, who had recently lost his young wife and two
children and was in prison in Scotland for preaching
the faith of the Reformation. Rutherford wrote
many letters from prison, and many of his most
memorable phrases were included in Anne Cousin’s
wonderful hymn, “The Sands of Time are Sinking.”
We all go through “winters” at various times in our
lives, yet the ironic and unintuitive truth is that God
delights to work in tremendous ways during these
times – though we may not realize it until the win-
ter is over. Preaching through a book like Habakkuk
would probably always be fitting, but it seems that
we are providentially in this book at just the right
time for many of us. I have been at the hospital
more in the last month than in the previous 21
months combined! I pray, and I ask you to pray,
that God would continue to bless my study and
meditation upon His word as I prepare to preach to
you. I encourage you to come back on Sunday eve-
nings as well, for we are growing closer to our Sav-
ior as we study His life through the gospel of Mark.
It is through the foolishness of preaching that sin-
ners are converted, conformed to Christ’s image,
and comforted, so bring your friends to hear God’s
transforming word of grace!
——————-
Beginning in September, several things will be
changing. We’ll be starting up new Sunday school
classes, as well as new adult small groups and our
children’s catechism program. You can find more
information on these in this newsletter. We’ll also
be changing the way we do our monthly fellowship
meals. We have been doing church-wide fellowship
meals once a month, usually the second Sunday of
the month. Starting the first Sunday in September,
we will begin meeting by shepherding group; we
have four groups, and each group will meet one
week a month.
Where the group meets can vary, though at Al-
good School or at the church property will be the
most likely spots. Our regular visitors have been
assigned to groups as well, and the meals will always
be open to any visitor that would like to stay – es-
pecially college students! They’ll still be potluck din-
ners, so we won’t lose the element of surprise as to
what we’ll be eating for lunch. Here is the schedule
(the shepherding group list will be sent by email):
1st Sunday – Darryl Richards; 2nd Sunday – Dennis
Parker; 3rd Sunday – Robert Row; 4th Sunday – Brad
Bleasdale. The fifth Sundays will be special visitor
lunches, open to any visitor who would like to come.
Our hope as a Session is that the smaller group
size will lend itself to more intimate fellowship
among us, enabling us to get to know one another
better so that we might be better equipped to minis-
ter to one another. Many of you know that an elder
is assigned to have primary responsibility to caring
for your soul; you probably don’t know that there
are two deacons assigned to each group, or who the
other members are that make up the shepherding
group. Hopefully by meeting together monthly you
will learn these things, and your love for the church
will continue to grow. I exhort you to continue to
grow in your fellowship, exercising hospitality to
strangers, sharing meals and life with one another,
serving one another, encouraging one another. May
God continue to make us to be a body committed to
growing together in love and unity.
——————-
One last note – I have, much to my own sur-
prise, begun a blog. For those of you unfamiliar with
the term, it is essentially an online diary. Don’t
worry, I won’t be writing my deepest darkest se-
crets. Rather, I will be recording (as time allows) my
meditations upon the word of God, good quotes,
things I run across on the internet, and thoughts
about other things that interest me: gardening, eco-
nomics, Robert’s Rules of Order, GTD, history,
mathematics, woodworking, etc. The web address is
www.calebcangelosi.wordpress.com. I invite you to
visit, read, even comment – but don’t feel too bad if I
don’t comment back! One of my fears about blogging
is that I will fail to redeem the time; I will waste the
short time that God has given me in this life. Pray
that I will have wisdom as to when/what/why I blog.
My desire is that the Lord would use this as a way to
bring glory to Himself, edify His people, convert the
lost, sharpen my writing skills, and pass on thing that
He is teaching me. No one may care what I have to
say, but you are willing to listen to me week in and
week out, so maybe you’ll find this interesting as
well.
Your Pastor, Caleb

August 7, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:26:09 +0000

What do we mean when we confess in the
Apostle’s Creed, “He descended into hell”

That’s a good question. First, let’s state
what we do not mean, i.e., what the Bible does
not teach. Remember, a confession or creed is
only as good as it is biblical, and we Presbyteri-
ans believe that the Apostle’s Creed, Nicene
Creed, and Westminster Standards are biblical
– or else we wouldn’t affirm them. Our expla-
nation of the phrases of the creeds must be
based upon Scripture. When we say that Jesus
descended into hell: 1) We do not mean that
the soul of Jesus went to a physical hell until the
resurrection; rather, the Bible teaches that the
human body of Jesus went into His grave, and
His human soul went immediately into heaven
to be with His heavenly Father. As He told the
thief on the cross, “Truly I say to you, today
you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).
He had committed His soul into the hand of the
Father (Luke 23:46). 2) We do not mean that
the soul of Jesus went into hell to release Old
Testament saints from spiritual captivity or to
give unconverted souls a second chance to hear
the gospel again from Him or to declare His
triumph over the forces of darkness. This un-
derstanding of the phrase flows from a misun-
derstanding of I Peter 3:18-22 (as well as I Peter
4:6 and Ephesians 4:9-10). I Peter 3:18-22 is
speaking of the preaching of Jesus to the people
of Noah’s day, during Noah’s day, and through
Noah (cf. II Peter 2:5). The spirits are now in
prison, but Jesus’ proclamation to them oc-
curred when they were still alive on earth.
So what does the phrase mean? Well, there
have been at least two main ways to understand
the phrase biblically, depending on whether you
take the word “hell” as referring to. Some refer
it to the spiritual anguish and hellish torments
which He suffered, particularly on the cross
(e.g., Calvin, Institutes, II.xvi.10 – “If Christ had
died only a bodily death, it would have been ineffec-
tual. No – it was expedient at the same time for
him to undergo the severity of God’s vengeance, to
appease his wrath and satisfy his just judg-
ment…[T]he Creed sets forth what Christ suffered
in the sight of men, and then appositely speaks of
that invisible and incomprehensible judgment which
he underwent in the sight of God in order that we
might know not only that Christ’s body was given as
the price of our redemption, but that he paid a
greater and more excellent price in suffering in his
soul the terrible torments of a condemned and for-
saken man.”). Others maintain that it is driving
home the reality of Christ’s death and pertains
to His state of death, the time between His
death and resurrection from the dead (e.g., the
Westminster Larger Catechism #50 – “Christ’s
humiliation after his death consisted in his being
buried (I Cor. 15:3-4), and continuing in the state of
the dead, and under the power of death till the third
day (Psa. 16:10; Acts 2:24-27, 31; Rom. 6:9; Matt.
12:40); which hath been otherwise expressed in
these words, he descended into hell.”). The latter
fits better with the word “hades/sheol,” upon
which the language of a descent into hell (or
more properly translated, “the grave/place of the
dead”) is based (see Psalm 6:5; 16:10; Acts 2:31).
But Francis Turretin (1623-1687), an Italian theo-
logian in Geneva a century after Calvin, has
noted that this is a disagreement in which we do
not need to take sides: “If it is asked which of
these two opinions ought to be retained, we answer
both can be admitted and be made to agree per-
fectly with each other. Thus by the descent into hell
may be understood the extreme degree of Christ’s
suffering and humiliation, both as to soul and body;
and as the lowest degree of humiliation as to the
body was its detention in the sepulcher [grave], so as
to the soul were those dreadful torments he felt. And
thus this last article will be apposite [fitting] for ex-
pressing the last degree of Christ’s humiliation,
whether as to disgrace of body or as to anguish of
soul” (Institutes, Q.xvi).
To confess that you believe that Christ de-
scended into hell is to say that Christ has suf-
fered fully and perfectly for your sins, taking
upon Himself the wages of sin that we earned,
that we might know life abundant and eternal.
He has been humiliated to the uttermost, that
we might be exalted with Him on high. Confess
this truth with your lips and your heart and re-
joice that you have such a Savior!
Is there something you would like to ask the pastor? Send
in your questions to newsletter@jmorse.com.

July 17, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:23:46 +0000

Due to a summer cold and preaching/teaching
three times on Sunday, I have lost my voice. It has
been a frustrating providence, not least, I’m sure,
to Robert and Cheryl, who were counting on me
to lead singing and to speak at VBS. I thank them
for their patience and hard work making this a
great week for our children, and I thank Anna
Richards, Hannah Stewart, Annalee Cunningham,
Ashtyn Farris, Michael Burks, and Cody Winston
for helping out with the singing!
Since I haven’t been able to talk much this
week, I’ve had some time to reflect upon my
muteness. The Puritans spoke about “improving
your afflictions” – that is, taking advantage of the
trials and tribulations that the Lord sends into
your life, using them to draw closer to God and to
grow in faith, humility, and gratitude. So here are
some of the things I’ve been meditating upon:
I’ve been struck by how tenuous my life and
livelihood is. I speak for a living; in teaching,
preaching, praying, counseling, conversing, encour-
aging, confronting, singing, administrating, etc.
What if I lost my voice completely? I would be
unable to fulfill my calling. Sure, I could still think
and study and write sermons and letters and arti-
cles and papers. But I would have a near impossi-
ble time being your full-time pastor. I would be
like a dentist or doctor or carpenter whose hands
were crushed in a trash compactor, or like an ath-
lete losing his sight. It’s made me so thankful for
the voice God has given me, and the ability He has
given me to provide for my family in this way. I am
completely dependent upon Him.
I’ve also realized how important verbal com-
munication is in life. Losing my voice has made me
see how much I take for granted the ability and
opportunities I have to speak to my wife and chil-
dren, to make a phone call to one of you, to sing
praises to my Savior, to preach twice on Sunday,
to talk to the checkout lady at Wal-Mart. The fact
that our God is a speaking God, and that we are
made in His image, and are therefore speakers as
well, is something we should remember often. The
tongue is a powerful instrument, as James and
Solomon remind us, and so the picture of a hus-
band who grunts responses to his wife while his
head is in front of a computer screen or newspa-
per, or who uses his tongue to verbally lash his
wife and children, is an affront to our Creator and
Savior. “The mouth of the righteous is fountain of
life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals vio-
lence;” “Death and life are in the power of the
tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit”
(Prov. 10:11; 18:21). But don’t forget this proverb –
“When there are many words, transgression is un-
avoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise”
(Prov. 10:19).
Through all this, God’s word to Moses has been
on my heart: “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who
makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I,
the LORD? Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your
mouth, and teach you what you are to say” (Exodus
3:11-12). I need to hear that as I prepare to speak
God’s word to you each week. Any sermon I
preach, or Sunday school or Bible study I teach, is a
gift from God; I have no reason to boast in it what-
soever. He gave me not only what I say, but the
physical ability to say it. I need to trust that He is
the one who will feed His sheep through my mouth,
and not fall into pride or despair about my ser-
mons.
I know there is a lot of pain in our congregation,
a lot of affliction, turmoil, struggling marriages,
health issues, depression, discouragement and dis-
appointments, fear of the future, financial/vocational
uncertainty. I pray that God will give you grace to
trust in Him through the valleys and ditches, and
that your cries will be that of the Psalmist: “My soul
cleaves to the dust; revive me according to Your
word…I am exceedingly afflicted; revive me, O LORD,
according to Your word…Look upon my affliction and
rescue me, for I do not forget Your law…This is my
comfort in my affliction, that Your word has revived
me…Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I
keep Your word…It is good for me that I was afflicted,
that I may learn Your statutes…I know, O LORD, that
your judgments are righteous, and that in faithfulness
You have afflicted me…If Your law had not been my
delight, then I would have perished in my affliction…”
(Ps. 119:25, 107, 153, 50, 67, 71, 75, 92).
—————————————
Since we just crossed the 500th anniversary
of the birth of John Calvin (July 10, 1509), we’ve
included a few selections from his writings in this
edition of our newsletter, as well as a brief biogra-
phy. Enjoy!
Your Pastor, Caleb

July 3, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:22:15 +0000

I thank you for praying for me and my family as
we went our separate ways these past two weeks.
Elizabeth and the children went down to Louisiana
and Mississippi to visit our families, while I was in
Orlando at the 37th PCA General Assembly, and at
Dale Hollow Lake State Park for my annual study
week. I missed my family and my church family, but
the Lord was faithful to encourage me and help me
redeem the time apart.
The “people” part of GA is always a fruitful time
of reflecting upon one’s philosophy and practice of
ministry, and the Lord refreshed, instructed, and re-
buked me by the discussion and the sermons at the
worship services. I was able to reconnect with old
friends from around the country, and meet new
ones, including Scott Phillips, the former RUF campus
minister here at TTU, and now the pastor of First
Presbyterian Church in Louisville, MS.
The “meeting” part of GA was at points tedious,
and at points tense. The main issue of deliberation
was on whether the denomination should form a
study committee to examine again the Biblical roles
of women in the church, particularly as they relate to
the office of deacon. Our Book of Church Order
(BCO) is clear that only men may be ordained to the
office of deacon, and that women should be assisting
the deacons in serving those in distress, but there are
a variety of practices across our denomination, many
flying in the face of the BCO. The Assembly voted,
446-427, not to form the study committee. As you
can see, the vote was extremely close, although this
ought not to be read as 446 people don’t want
women to be ordained as deacons, and 427 do want
women to be ordained as deacons. Rather, many
who voted for a study committee are against women
deacons, but thought that we needed a study com-
mittee either to assert the PCA’s position more
clearly, or to allow for honest and charitable commu-
nication among elders who disagree. Many who
voted against a study committee wanted to keep
their divergent practices under the radar. I voted
against a study committee, because I believe that the
PCA’s current position is biblical and straightforward,
and I believe that the report of a study committee
would circumvent the normal process of amending
our BCO. If people want to make the BCO stricter
or looser, then there is a proper way to bring that
question and deliberation before the Assembly – and
it is very possible that we will see such efforts in the
future.
If you are interested in reading more about the
Assembly, Joel Belz (the editor of World Magazine and
a ruling elder in a PCA church in Asheville, NC) has
written about it on the PCA’s e-zine, By Faith Online,
at http://byfaithonline.com/page/pca-news/joel-belz-
closing-comments-on-the-37th-assembly. Tim Keller
(senior pastor at Redeemer PCA in New York City),
and Ligon Duncan (senior pastor at First PCA in Jack-
son, MS) had a great debate/discussion at the assembly
on the women’s deacon question. You can download
it in two parts (for $2.00 each) at

http://www.barkerproductions.net/shop.asp?action=de

tails&inventoryID=152470&catId=17451 and

http://www.barkerproductions.net/shop.asp?action=de

tails&inventoryID=154485&catId=17451. I apologize
for saying that you could watch the GA live on the
web; I didn’t realize that cost factors had made it im-
possible for the denomination to do so!
My study week was a great blessing to me and I
hope and pray to you as well. Aside from reading a
book on pastoral ministry, and the book of Jeremiah, I
spent the mornings working on the first four sermons
in the Gospel of Mark, my upcoming series in the eve-
ning service. (On a side though related note, I want to
strongly encourage you to make it your habit to start
attending evening worship, if it isn’t already. It will help
you keep the whole Sabbath day holy to the Lord, and
it will be good for your heart as we walk with Jesus
through the gospel of Mark. Use it as an opportunity
to bring your unbelieving friends to hear the gospel
and fellowship with God’s people. Ask yourself, will I
be spending Sunday evening in a better way that being
under God’s word, with God’s people, and serving the
lost?) In the afternoons, I worked on the first four ser-
mons in Habakkuk, through which I will start preach-
ing in August after I finish Titus. I have never been able
to get ahead on sermon preparation before, so I pray
that this will be a springboard from which I can stay on
top of the wave, as it were, and be freed to reflect
more on the application of God’s word to your hearts
and minds. On the two Lord’s Days that I was off, I
was able to do two things I had not yet gotten to do:
visit some of the Nashville PCA churches, and visit
some of the other churches in Cookeville. Both Sun-
days were edifying and instructive, and made me
thankful to be among you at Grace Presbyterian
Church in Cookeville! Please pray that the refresh-
ment and renewal the Lord gave me the past two
weeks will be reflected in my care for you, my care for
handling God’s word, and my care for my family.
Your Pastor, Caleb

June 12, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:16:11 +0000

This coming Lord’s Day is a glorious occasion in the life
of our church: the ordination and installation of new dea-
cons. The office of deacon is a perpetual office in the church,
and is one of sympathy and service, after the example of
Lord Jesus. It expresses the communion of the saints, espe-
cially in their helping one another in time of need. The dea-
cons are to set the pace for compassion and mercy among
the body of Christ, ministering to those who are in need, the
sick, the friendless, and any who may be in distress. They also
are entrusted with the funds and property of the church, and
seek to develop the grace of liberality in the members of the
church. The deacons allow the elders to devote their time to
prayer and the ministry of the word (see Acts 6:1-7). Our
Book of Church Order helpfully defines ordination for us,
based upon the Scriptures: “Ordination is the authoritative
admission of one duly called to an office in the Church of
God, accompanied with prayer and the laying on of hands, to
which it is proper to add the giving of the right hand of fel-
lowship.” It is an act of government, not a magic charm, by
which men are set apart to the work to which God has
called them. During the ordination service, vows will be
taken by both the deacons and the congregation. Here is the
vow you will take: “Do you, the members of this church, ac-
knowledge and receive these brothers as deacons, and do you
promise to yield them all that honor, encouragement and obedi-
ence in the Lord to which their office, according to the Word of
God and the Constitution of this Church, entitles them?” Pray that
God would give us all grace to keep our vows and to honor
the offices He has instituted in His Church. Pray for Jason
Morse, Wes Stevens, and Michael Savage, that God would
give them a heart of wisdom and compassion as they seek to
deny themselves for the sake of the body.
——————————–
Next week is one of the weeks I look forward to the
most each year: the week of our denomination’s General
Assembly (GA). What is GA? It is the gathering together of
elders from every presbytery across the country, for the
purpose of worship, deliberation on matters pertaining to
the denomination, instruction, and fellowship. The week be-
gins on Monday, with meetings of “Committees of Commis-
sioners.” The PCA has five permanent committees
(Administrative Committee, Christian Education and Publica-
tions, Mission to North America, Mission to the World, and
Reformed University Ministries) and four agencies (Covenant
College, Covenant Theological Seminary, Retirement and
Benefits, Incorporated, and Ridge Haven Conference Center)
that serve the church and carry out the ministry of the
church as a whole; the committees of commissions meet to
review the work of the permanent committees and agencies.
I happen to be on the Administrative Committee of Commis-
sioners this year, and I am looking forward to getting to
know more about the work of that permanent committee.
The assembly officially begins on Tuesday evening, with a
worship service and a sermon from the outgoing moderator,
and the election of a new moderator (the moderator alter-
nates between a teaching elder and a ruling elder). From
Wednesday morning to Friday morning, we hear reports,
and debate on issues that arise from the various committees.
The main bulk of debate occurs surrounding the various
“overtures” that are sent up from the Presbyteries. These
overtures seek to do something, say something, or change
something in the Book of Church Order. There is also debate
surrounding the Review of Presbytery Records. Since the PCA
is a connectional denomination, each presbytery must submit
its records to the General Assembly to be examined for theo-
logical integrity, wisdom, and submission to the Book of
Church Order. The Assembly also hears a report from the
Standing Judicial Commission, which decides and rules on cases
of discipline that come to the Assembly through a variety of
ways. If you’re interested, you can follow the entire GA by
watching a live video stream on the web at www.pcaga.com.
Each morning there are seminars offered on a range of
pastoral and Biblical-theological topics. Each evening there is a
worship service. And throughout the week, I look forward to
seeing old friends from around the country, meeting new peo-
ple, and gaining a new appreciation for what God is doing
through us and in us far and near. This year’s GA is at Disney
World (but don’t think that I’ll be hanging out with Mickey all
week; with all the meetings, I won’t see the light of day except
to eat meals). Darryl Richards will also be representing our
church as a commissioner, and Robert Row, who will be down
in Orlando taking an RTS preaching class, will also be visiting
when he is able. I’ll have more to say about this year’s GA
after I return.
Some years it has worked out for Elizabeth to come with
me to GA, but this year she and the children will be heading
down south to see family and friends in Mississippi and Louisi-
ana. Please pray for our safety as we go our separate ways.
Speaking of prayer, I encourage you to pray through the GA
prayer requests listed on Page One. And I covet your prayers
personally as I head from GA to Dale Hollow State Park for a
week of study and prayer. Mark 6:31-32 tells us, “And Jesus said
to His disciples, ‘Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and
rest a while.’ (For there were many people coming and going, and
they did not even have time to eat.) 32 They went away in the boat
to a secluded place by themselves.” Don’t worry, I have had time
to eat; but I do desire to get away to a secluded place with my
Savior and spend time prayerfully reflecting upon this past
year, studying for upcoming sermon series, and being renewed
and reinvigorated in His grace. Please pray that God would be
gracious to me as I seek His face and His wisdom. Pray specifi-
cally that I will be able to get ahead on my sermons, so that I
might be freed up in the days to come to be a better pastor to
you.
——————————–
Jeff and Cathy Wilkins, our new RUF Campus Minister at
Tennessee Tech, will be moving to Cookeville in August, Lord
willing. We are planning a good old Grace welcome; more
information will be provided in the next few weeks. Please be
praying for them, that their house would sell in Raleigh and
that all the details of their move would work out. Also, pray
that the Lord would provide all the financial support needed
for him and his ministry here at TTU. We support RUF at
TTU as a church, but if you would like to give more individu-
ally (and I encourage you to do so), you can contact Jeff at
jwilkins@ruf.org.
Caleb

May 29, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:12:12 +0000

Well, for some people one was enough, and for others
there could never be enough. I’m talking about the crawfish, of
course. In spite of the rain, I think a great time was had by all
two weekends ago at our Strawberry Festival and Crawfish Boil.
Thanks for letting me share in all your tasty desserts, and for
letting me bring a bit of LA culture up north. They grow those
mudbugs pretty big down in the bayou, don’t they?
It was wonderful to spend time this past weekend with Jeff
Wilkins, our new RUF Campus Minister at Tennessee Tech. He
and his family should be moving to Cookeville sometime in June,
so if you didn’t get a chance to introduce yourself to them, look
for an opportunity after they arrive. They are eager to get in-
volved in the life of our church. It has been almost a year since
we have had a campus minister at Tech, and I for one am look-
ing forward to having another partner in ministry in town; I’m
sure our college students can’t wait till the Wilkins get here
either! Be praying that Jeff will be able to raise the money he
needs for his ministry here. If you have never personally sup-
ported RUF at TTU, now would be a great time to start.
This past Sunday’s officer election was the culmination of a
long process, and it was good to see God’s will made known
through your votes in favor of electing Jason Morse, Michael
Savage, and Wes Stevens to the office of deacon. These men
look forward to serving the flock in an official capacity, and un-
doubtedly they covet your prayers as they embark upon their
duties. Pray that their duty would also be their great delight; that
they would be filled with a heart of discerning compassion; that
they would have their eyes and ears attuned to the needs of the
saints; that the Lord would enable them to
“admonish the unruly, encourage the faint-
hearted, help the weak, and be patient with
everyone” (I Thessalonians 5:14); and that
their example would be contagious.
On June 14, we will have their ordination
service as a part of the morning worship ser-
vice. Ordination is the authoritative admission
of one duly called to an office in the Church
of God, accompanied with prayer and the
laying on of hands (Book of Church Order 17-2);
it is not a magic charm, but an act of govern-
ment in which the one ordained is formally
and authoritatively set apart to the Lord’s
service. We learn about ordination in the
pages of the Old and New Testaments (see
Leviticus 8; I Samuel 16; Mark 3:13-19; Acts
6:6; I Timothy 4:14; etc.). At the ordination
service, vows will be taken by the candidates,
as well as by the congregation. You will be
asked this question: Do you, the members of
this church, acknowledge and receive these broth- ers as deacons, and do you promise to yield them all that honor, en-
couragement and obedience in the Lord to which their office, according
to the Word of God and the Constitution of this Church, entitles them?
Pray that God will give us His grace to keep our vows.
As you may have noticed over the last few months, commit-
tees are up and running. We currently have five active commit-
tees: a Missions Committee (chaired by Tommy Roberts), a Fel-
lowship Committee (chaired by Jeff Enochs), a Family Ministry
Committee (chaired by Robert Row), a Finance Committee
(chaired by Jamey Farris), and a Building Committee (chaired by
Phil Wilbourn). The Session has approved an organizational chart
so that these committees will relate efficiently and effectively to
one another and to the Session and Diaconate (see below). If you
have questions or suggestions about these areas of the life and
ministry of our church, these men are your point people. They are
each excited about their particular area of ministry, and desire to
involve God’s people as best they can. I pray that God will use
these committees to facilitate our church’s ministry according to
our purpose statement, and to enable the elders and deacons to
focus less on administrative tasks and more on the hearts and lives
of individuals and families. May God use our attempts to do all
things “properly and in an orderly manner” (I Cor. 14:40) to glo-
rify His name and build kingdom of Christ.
Caleb

May 14, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:09:20 +0000

One of my chief delights is to know that the Lord is using
my preaching to increase your knowledge of and love for His
word. So it was good to hear someone say something to this
effect the other day, “I used to just think Titus was some small
book in the New Testament that said something about elders;
but there is so much truth and practical counsel in it.” Amen!
Titus is one of my favorite books of the Bible, and I hope that
our journey through it has been profitable. We’re almost fin-
ished with it, a fact I consider with some regret, since I know
that I haven’t preached it as well as I should have; there is so
much more in it that I wasn’t able to bring out; and with the rest
of the Bible ahead of us, the likelihood is good that we won’t be
able to visit it in such detail again. I pray that God would be
pleased to write its eternal truths upon your hearts, and spur
you on to your own reflection and study of its doctrines and
commandments.
I want to share with you two quotes that I wish I had incor-
porated into my sermon this past Sunday, one from John Calvin
(the great French Reformer whose 500th birthday we celebrate
this year), and one from Stephen Charnock (a seventeenth cen-
tury English Puritan pastor). Commenting on Paul’s description
of fallen man as “enslaved to various lusts and pleasures” (Titus
3:3), Charnock has great insight into how that slavery is at the
same time an incapacitating and a willing slavery: “Since we are
overwhelmed by the rubbish of our corrupted estate, we can no more
cooperate to the removal of it than a man buried under the ruins of a
fallen house can contribute to the removal of that great weight that
lies upon him. Neither would a man in that state help such a work,
because his lusts are pleasures; he serves his lusts, which are pleas-
ures as well as lusts, and therefore served with delight.” Man dead in
sin is not able to rescue himself, nor does he want to be res-
cued. This ought to cause us to have an even greater compas-
sion in our heart toward unbelievers. Listen to Calvin: “Nothing
is better adapted to subdue our pride, and at the same time to mod-
erate our severity, than when it is shown that everything that we turn
against others may fall back on our own head; for he forgives easily
who is compelled to sue for [i.e., request] pardon in return. And indeed,
ignorance of our own faults is the only cause that renders us unwilling
to forgive our brethren. They who have a true zeal for God, are, indeed,
severe against those who sin; but, because they begin with themselves,
their severity is always attended with compassion. In order that believ-
ers, therefore, may not haughtily and cruelly mock at others, who are
still held in ignorance and blindness, Paul brings back to their remem-
brance what sort of persons they formerly were; as if he had said, ‘If
such fierce treatment is done to those on whom God has not yet be-
stowed the light of the gospel, with equally good reason might you have
been at one time harshly treated. Undoubtedly you would not have
wished that any person should be so cruel to you; exercise now, there-
fore, the same moderation toward others.’”
As I mentioned, we are almost done working our way through
Paul’s letter to Titus. We’re also near the end of our study of the
ministries of Elijah and Elisha. What is coming up? I desire to feed
you with the whole purpose of God (Acts 20:20, 27), which in
broadest terms means studying both the Old Testament/Covenant
and the New Testament/Covenant. So, starting at some point this
summer, in the mornings I’ll be seeking to open up the message of
the prophet Habakkuk, and in the evenings I’ll be preaching
through the life of Christ as recorded for us in Mark’s gospel. I’m
looking forward to both these series, and pray that the Lord’s
word would bear fruit in your lives.
For the next two Sunday evenings, Robert will be preaching
God’s word to us. I encourage you to come, and to make Sunday
evening worship attendance a habit. The word of God never re-
turns to God empty, without accomplishing what He desires, so
sit under it as much as you can. Long for the pure milk and meat
of the word!
Speaking of meat, don’t forget about our Strawberry Festival
and Crawfish Boil this Saturday afternoon and evening. It’s a
come-and-go affair, and we hope you’ll bring your friends with
you. We’ll have the party rain or shine, but Lord willing there will
be more shine than rain! If you don’t know how to peel a craw-
fish, don’t worry – we’ll help you.

Caleb

April 30, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:05:14 +0000

This coming Lord’s Day, we will celebrate together the foun-
dation of our faith, the incarnation, death and resurrection of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Lord’s Supper tells us that
there is nothing more we must add in order to be saved; it tells
us that all is well between us and God, even to the point that we
get to sit at His table and share a meal with Him; and it tells us
that we are still waiting on our King’s return, at which point we
will eat and drink and celebrate like never before. His finished
work is our hope, so prepare your hearts this week to come to
the table. These words from question 81 of the Heidelberg
Catechism are always encouraging to me: “Who are to come to
the table of the Lord? Those who are displeased with themselves for
their sins, yet trust that these are forgiven them, and that their re-
maining infirmity is covered by the suffering and death of Christ; who
also desire more and more to strengthen their faith and to amend
their life. But the impenitent and hypocrites eat and drink judgment to
themselves (I Cor. 10:19-22; 11:28-29; Psa. 51:3; 103:1-4; John
7:37-38; Matt. 5:6).”
Parents, I encourage you to spend time with your non-
communing (as well as communing) children on Saturday eve-
ning, explaining to them again what the Lord’s Supper is all
about, what it symbolizes, what Jesus did for sinners like them,
how it is a means of grace to believers, and calling them to faith
and repentance, so that they too might come and sup at the
table. Use the Children’s Catechism or the Shorter Catechism
(and for your own instruction use the Larger Catechism and the
Heidelberg Catechism). Like the hungry-and-now-satiated lepers
in II Kings 7, don’t keep the good news to yourself, but tell
other famine-stricken (kin)folk where they can get bread. If you
see the reality of saving faith, and a maturity of faith such that
they can heed Paul’s instructions to “examine himself” and
“discern the body” (I Cor. 11:28-29), then by all means, speak to
an elder and bring your child before the Session so that his or her
faith might be strengthened by this means of grace each month.
If you weren’t at worship with us this past Lord’s Day, we
announced a congregational meeting on May 24, following our
morning worship service, for the purpose of electing additional
deacons. Three men (Jason Morse, Michael Savage, and Wes Ste-
vens) were examined and approved by the Session as eligible to
stand for election to the office of deacon. These three men are
not running for one spot, as if one will win over the other two.
Rather, the Session recommends all three be elected, and they will
be if each one receives a majority of the votes of those present at
the congregational meeting. Over the next month, I encourage
you to get to know these men, so that you might vote with an
informed and clear conscience.
I hope you can join Elizabeth and me in our backyard on May
16, at 3:00 p.m., for our 6th Annual Cangelosi Family Strawberry
Festival. We’d love for this party to be an opportunity for the
unchurched to get to know some Christians, so bring your favor-
ite strawberry dessert and a chair – and invite a friend to join you.
If you’d like a little spice in your life, stick around at 5:00 for the
crawfish boil (bring your own drinks). My brother has recently
started selling crawfish in Baton Rouge, and he is going to fly me
up some live ones for us to boil, along with the requisite corn and
potatoes. Unfortunately, crawfish and shipping et al aren’t free, so
we have to charge $8/person, $15/couple, and $20 max/family.
You might be thinking, “There’s no way I’m going to put that meat
in my mouth” – even if you just want to watch, come join us!
Laissez les bon temps rouler! (That’s French for “Let the good
times roll!”)
Caleb

April 8, 2009

brsteele21 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 03:59:57 +0000

When we think about what Jesus has done for us, we
tend to think primarily about the death of Jesus for our
sins. Obviously this is not a wrong place to put emphasis
– but if we fail to meditate often upon the fact that Jesus
did not remain dead, but rose victoriously over the grave,
then we are missing out on a huge part of the finished
work of Christ and of the comfort that God desires His
people to know. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is “of
first importance” (I Cor. 15:3-4) for the believer in Jesus
Christ (indeed, the preaching of the apostles in the book
of Acts focuses even more on the resurrection of Jesus
than it does on His death), but unfortunately it is often
something we think of only once a year. Rather, 1) we
need to remember that every Lord’s Day we are celebrat-
ing His resurrection, gathering to meet with our victori-
ous King (this is the reason the Sabbath switched from
the seventh day to the first day of the week); 2) every
time we share in the Lord’s Supper, we are communing
with our risen Savior who is alive forevermore; 3) our
hope in justification is that the Father has accepted the
sinless sacrifice of His Son – He has been justi-
fied/vindicated, and has been raised for our justification
(see I Timothy 3:16; Romans 4:25); 4) our hope in sancti-
fication is that we have been united to Christ in His resur-
rection, “so that as Christ was raised from the dead
through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in
newness of life…Now if we have died with Christ, we
believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that
Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die
again; death is no longer master over Him. For the death
that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that
He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be
dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not
let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts…”
(Romans 6:4, 8-12); and 5) our hope in glorification is that
one day Christ Jesus “will transform the body of our hum-
ble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Phil.
3:21).
By His resurrection He has brought in the new crea-
tion, and we have been given the down payment of the
Holy Spirit to assure us of the fullness to come when
Christ returns. Never think about the death of Christ with-
out remembering that He didn’t stay dead, He didn’t stay
on earth, and He won’t stay in heaven; He rose, He as-
cended, and He’s coming again! May every day of our lives
as Christians be marked by a deep reliance upon and joy in
the resurrection of our Savior. He is alive! “Therefore, my
beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abound-
ing in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in
vain in the Lord” (I Cor. 15:58).
On a very related note, I strongly encourage you to
participate in the mission trip to Bowling Green, Kentucky,
to assist our sister church there as they minister to their
community. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to make it, since
we will be visiting my mom (please keep praying for her).
Our Missions Committee has been hard at work, and on
April 24th, at the Roberts’ Switch Activity Center (on
Tommy Roberts’ property), the committee will host a Mis-
sions Dinner to spur us all in our calling to make disciples
of all the nations. I hope that you will make plans to be
there.
I also want to let you know about a great bluegrass fes-
tival the next day (April 25th), hosted by Jack Elmore’s band,
Brimstone Creek. The festival is located down in a beautiful
hollow of Moss, TN, near Gainesboro. If you’re interested
in coming along, check out

http://brimstock-2009.tripod.com.

Another website you might be interested in visiting is
this one:

http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/printout/0,292

39,1884779_1884782_1884760,00.html. Interestingly, Cal-
vinism clocked in at Number 3 on Time Magazine’s list of
Ten Ideas Changing the World Right Now. There has been
a resurgence of Biblical truth and grace over the last thirty-
plus years, and even the culture around us is noticing. May
God grant that our understanding of our sinfulness and of
His grace might transform us and our world for His glory!